


No Lips to Seal

by Vexatious



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Underfell, Brotherly Love, Gen, Mild Blood, Mild Language, Minor Violence, Protective Sans, Underfell Papyrus, Underfell Sans, Underfell Undyne, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-25
Updated: 2017-11-25
Packaged: 2019-02-06 13:44:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,247
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12818802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vexatious/pseuds/Vexatious
Summary: Can a monster with a merciful SOUL survive in the kill or be killed world of Underfell? Maybe with a little creativity and a whole lots of lies...





	No Lips to Seal

**Author's Note:**

> Be sure to check out my [Tumblr](http://vex-bittys.tumblr.com)!

Some say that it is violence shrouding Underfell in darkness; others say it is secrets, buried more deeply even than the monsters in their underground prison of earth, stone, and ancient magic. In this world it’s kill or be killed, and the best way to survive is to keep a whole deck of aces up your sleeve. This isn’t a story about having aces in spades, however. This is the story of a joker and a knave.

* * *

Sans had worried about Papyrus’ future from the moment the babybones had tumbled out of his incubation tube and bitten him on the ankle. Such ferocity boded well for Papyrus’ future, or it would have if Sans didn’t know his little brother at all. Despite his savage antics, Papyrus had a caring and merciful soul, and in Underfell, that made him just as big of a target as his older brother.

Sans possessed only a single hit point. This, combined with his equally singular attack and defense, meant easy experience for any monster who didn’t know better. Dragging a babybones along in his foraging made it a two-for-one deal. How Sans managed to survive the frequent attacks remained the Underground’s best kept secret. Sans did have a stat a bit higher than the loneliest number, a stat that couldn’t be viewed by Checking him: his LV. In this world, Sans wasn’t about to allow himself or his brother to  _be killed_.

Sans honed his skills, practicing dodging and overwhelming opponents with a barrage of attacks. He perfected blue magic, developed elaborate bone attacks, and even had one of his teeth capped in gold to give the illusion of toughness. Eventually, he and his younger brother had settled in Snowdin.

The small town of Snowdin lacked the dense population of the capitol. The few residents who fought for experienced simply weren’t interested in the meager pickings from a puny skeleton monster and his babybones brother. The local guards were willing to overlook Sans and Papyrus entirely as long as Sans periodically threw them a literal bone. In the Fell, you accepted peace and safety for as long as you could hold onto it, but nothing lasts forever.

As Papyrus matured, it became painfully obvious that he would be the opposite of his older brother in every way. His tall, lanky stature made his brother look even more stout, and his penchant for high-heeled boots only accentuated the difference further. Papyrus lacked Sans’ single-minded disregard for any lives but theirs; his soul burned with empathy. His mind sought to see the good in others, a pursuit that Sans had long since given up on.

The most important difference, the one thing that changed everything, involved Papyrus’ stats. Everyone who knew the gold-toothed skeleton assumed that his younger brother would have similarly sub-par attack, defense, and hit points. Even Sans hadn’t expected Papyrus to blossom into such a powerful monster. Unfortunately, a well-endowed monster represented a life-changing wealth of experience, and that meant Sans and his brother were no longer safe in Snowdin.

It happened on a sunny afternoon, not that the sun ever really penetrated the thick canopy of trees where Papyrus practiced magic attacks with Sans and occasionally designed elaborate puzzles. That afternoon, Papyrus bounced excitedly as he eagerly showed Sans the system of spikes and pressure pads he’d set up. He was explaining the solution to Sans, who, though quite clever, feigned bafflement to please his brother when the dog monster attacked.

Doggo, a Guardsdog and regular at Grillby’s, landed only a single blow, claws tearing deeply into bone over Papyrus’ left eye. He didn’t get a chance to press the attack against the shocked teenager; Sans moved like lightning, pinning the mongrel to a nearby tree with a bone attack before summoning a pair of dragon-skull Gaster Blasters to end his worthless life. The Blasters opened their mouths in unison, jaws unhinging as they gathered energy.

_Ping!_

Papyrus had only perfected one bit of battle magic, and he used it now to turn his own brother’s soul blue. The dragon skulls froze in stasis, magic swirling in their gaping, unmoving maws. Doggo, sensing a reprieve, struggled against the bone that had punctured his shoulder and held him to the tree. Sans’ attacks were efficient and accurate- they had to be- and left his opponent with no chance for escape. Red snarled, fighting his brother’s magical immobilization

.“Papyrus!” he snapped.

“Sans, I’m sorry. Please don’t kill him. I’m sure he’s learned his lesson!” Papyrus pleaded for Doggo’s life even as he clutched his damaged socket, blood seeping between his fingers. Doggo nodded his enthusiastic agreement to Papyrus’ statement.

“Fine, just let go of my soul, Papyrus.” Sans’ red eyelights never left Doggo’s claws, dripping his brother’s blood onto the previously pristine snow.

“Promise me, Sans,” pressed the lanky skeleton. He knew his brother too well.

“I promise not to kill him,” growled Sans. As soon Papyrus released his soul, one of the Gaster Blasters dissipated with a whoosh. The other Blaster, however, spewed a beam of concentrated energy squarely into Doggo’s eyes.

“Sans!” Papyrus shouted in reproach as Sans dismissed his bone attack. Doggo collapsed at the base of the tree, clutching his face and howling in agony. Sans was already walking away, discarding the would-be murderer like so much human anime.

“C’mon Paps. I need to take a look at those scratches. The mangy bastard will live.” He added the word probably under his breath. Sans truly didn’t care either way, but his younger brother would be traumatized if he saw his assailant die.

Subdued, Papyrus followed Sans home. After inspecting the wound, Sans reassured his brother that his eyesight would be unaffected, but he would have a pretty intimidating scar over much of the left side of face. Sans had little hope that the scarring would discourage future attacks; the potential experience from a powerful monster was worth the risk to many who were trying to get ahead in the Fell. How long could Sans keep his brother safe? How long before he lost the only thing that mattered to him?

That night over a hot dinner of Papyrus’ lasagna and chilly silence, Sans concocted his most ambitious plan ever, a plan to construct a facade that would encompass their entire lives. Their new fabricated identities would be their armor against a dangerous world. Maybe the illusion of kill or be killed would suffice.

Sans set his plan in motion the next day while Papyrus stayed home to recuperate from his injuries. The first step? Approaching the Captain of the Royal Guard, Undyne, and convincing the savage fish monster to accept Papyrus into the Guard without testing him. Despite his high stats, Papyrus had failed to master even basic battle magic; turning a soul blue had been his one and only success.

The moment Sans stepped forward to speak to Undyne, he could feel her Checking him. The Captain had the audacity to laugh raucously at his meager stats before she outright insulted him.

“Whaddaya want, weakling?” she snapped, her one good eye constantly roving the ranks of the Guard. They feared her enough to behave, even behind her back. That’s why none of them even dared to gasp in shock when Sans challenged her to a fight.

She choked on laughter, doubled over, barely able to squawk a disbelieving “What?” before Sans continued, unfazed, tone icy.

“My brother wants to be Captain of the Royal Guard in Snowdin. He’s tired of the mutts running amok or lazing about, but he’s not interested in serving under a commander who’s all reputation and no substance. He wants me to see if you’re worth his time.”

Undyne glared daggers at the diminutive skeleton monster. “I guess your brother wants to be an only child.” On the last words, she lunged at Sans, summoning her spear in mid air and thrusting where Sans’ body had been a mere moment earlier. Undyne followed each of his movements with a stab of her weapon, trying and failing to anticipate his next dodge.

Screeching with frustration, the Captain of the Royal Guard increased her speed and redoubled her efforts to impale the puny being that mocked her. After a particularly skillful dodge, Sans summoned a pair of bones, driving them into the ground in a cross shape and trapping the pole arm beneath them. With a smug grin, he materialized a pair of Gaster Blasters. They awaited the command to gather magic, but Sans hoped that his performance had been adequate to satisfy Undyne.

Undyne glared. How had this miserable single hit point monster bested her? “You’re not bad, shrimp. Bring you brother to me tomorrow. I’d like to meet the monster cold enough to risk his brother for a Royal Guard position.”

Sans nodded, not trusting himself to speak. He’d exhausted every bit of energy within him for this victory; he couldn’t spoil it by fainting. No, he teleported home to do that, crashing face down on the bed into deep unconsciousness. He’d survived. He’d succeeded. Now he just had to get Papyrus to agree to his grand scheme. Later though. Now, he needed a nap.

“Are you sure this will work, Sans?” Papyrus asked for the umpteenth time that day, pawing nervously at the outfit Sans had designed for him. His brother had insisted he wear his favorite red boots, but the rest of the clothes were atrocious. A tattered shirt with armored shoulder pads left his spine exposed, and the low slung leather pants held up by the gaudy silver skull belt buckle didn’t even cover the crests of his hipbones. He thought the gloves and tattered scarf/cape looked just plain ridiculous. He didn’t want the other monsters to make fun of him!

When they arrived at the castle, the entire Royal Guard stood at attention to greet them. Those who had not been present for yesterday’s battle had been filled in by their fellow Guards, and by the time the story had fully circulated, it was well embellished. No one dared to mock the tall skeleton, imposing in his black and red attire, for fear of swift and fatal retribution.

Undyne strode haughtily forward to face the newcomer, and the heels of his boots lent Papyrus just enough height to be taller than her. Sans kept his face impassive, staying behind Papyrus at all times, giving the impression of a servile attitude. 

“So you’re the great and terrible Papyrus?” Undyne’s voice held a mocking undertone, meant to challenge the tall skeleton with his angular features and gruesome scar.

“Obviously,” Papyrus shot back coolly. Just like they’d practiced.

“And what exactly do you propose to do as Captain of Snowdin’s Guards?” Undyne disliked the cold immensely and without her heavy-handed guidance, the dogs of the Guard had become something of a running joke.

“Patrol for humans and set puzzles and traps to befuddle and capture them. And no more rowdy parties, chugging junk food at that disgusting bar!” Papyrus improvised in the disdainful growl that he and Sans had agreed on. Sans would’ve patted his brother’s back, but that would break character.

“What makes you think there will ever be a human in Snowdin?” Much of Undyne’s reputation centered around her capture of a fallen human.

“What makes you think there won’t be?” 

Silence fell in the wake of the insubordinate answer. Undyne’s booming laughter shattered it. She clapped a firm hand on Papyrus’ shoulder. “The position is yours!”

They’d done it!

Undyne’s sarcastic moniker stuck, and stories of the Great and Terrible Papyrus spread like wildfire, with a bit of help from some well-placed lies, courtesy of Sans. The new Captain appointed his weak, servile brother as a sentry, and rumor had it that he had done so to keep the smaller skeleton under his thumb. Doggo thanked his lucky stars that Papyrus had allowed Sans to punish him. His eyesight never fully recovered, but Doggo somehow convinced himself that Papyrus had intended to kill him when Sans intervened.

The ruse worked like a charm. For his part, Sans referred to his little brother as Boss and even wore a spiked red collar he’d found at the dump, pretending Papyrus had given it to him. The Great and Terrible Papyrus spent much of his time building traps and recalibrating his puzzles in the dense Snowdin forests. Nobody bothered him, fearing his wrath. Papyrus had an imperious nature and a scathing tongue, and no monster dared rile him enough to risk an attack.

As for Sans, nobody bothered him either. His laughable stats and his brother’s protection weren’t worth the measly experience or waste of time killing him. When they retired to their home at night, whispers ensued about what they must be up to behind the locked doors and blacked out windows. 

Nobody could ever have guessed that the Great and Terrible Papyrus made lasagna for his brother most nights. They’d watch the latest MTT TV specials, and then Papyrus would don his bunny pajamas and Sans would read him Fluffy Bunny stories until he dozed off in his racecar bed.The skeleton brothers of Snowdin became Underfell’s best kept secret. 

The pair had found a way to avoid killing or being killed. Most importantly, every night when Papyrus fell asleep, Sans would Check his stats. They remained the same, impressively high, except for one- the statistic that couldn’t be checked, Papyrus’ LV. It mirrored Sans’ own stats.

_One._


End file.
